Matara (Sinhala: මාතර, Tamil: மாத்தறை) (originally Mahathota) is a major city in Sri Lanka, located in the southern coast of Southern Province, Sri Lanka, 160 km from Colombo. It is one of the major commercial hubs in the country and it is the administrative capital of Matara District. [1] It was deeply affected by the Asian tsunami in December 2004
History

Matara historically belongs to the area called Ruhuna, one of the three kingdoms in Sri Lanka (Thun Sinhalaya). The temple in the middle of the town is also built by ancient kings and now it is a very popular sacred place among the Buddhists in the area..... Read more...